Flesh Wounds
by Xenoglossy
Summary: Naruto, Sasuke, a promise and a wound that will never heal.


**Pre Fic Rantings and a Sprinkle of Disclaimer:** I've been writing this thing for-frickin-ever. I started it waaaay back when rondaview first posted the Naruto 20 themes, however I more or less got stuck on a certain scene and put the entire fic on hiatus for a few months. Now that I'm finished, I'm... really happy. And don't have nearly as much to say in this disclaimer as I thought I did. Except: what the **hell** are you supposed to use as line breaks on ff.n these days?  
Naruto is not mine. I'm not assuming you thought it was.Flesh Wounds  
Cephied VariableNaruto's wounds healed quickly. Sasuke had always known this, but never understood why until Orochimaru told him (with some annoyance, because _really_, it was common sense) that Naruto had the Kyuubi sealed inside of him.But it made sense. Sasuke remembered the time Naruto had shoved a shuriken through his own hand- staight through until he bled and bled, but it never left a scar. He remembered the time he had impaled Naruto with the Chidori. Straight through- his hand had come out Naruto's back and he could feel the faint throb and shudder of Naruto's heart beating against his wrist. He remembered watching wide eyed with a mixture of horror, confusion and relief as the hole sealed itself over, as if it were nothing more than a flesh wound. He remembered facing down a barely human Naruto- red eyes, fangs, chakra flaring about him like a tail. His scars looked like whiskers for a reason, and Sasuke felt like an idiot for not figuring it out sooner.

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Naruto came to get him once. In the middle of the night Naruto snuck deep into the heart of Hidden Sound village and swept Sasuke away without ever saying a word. Sasuke followed him, breathless and curious as to how an idiot like Naruto had managed to get in and out of Orochimaru's base of operations without alerting a single Sound Nin.It had been nearly a year since their battle in 'The Valley of the End'. The last Sasuke had seen him, Naruto had been laying broken and unconcious on the ground looking like a sleeping child. Naruto was older now- his frame was still small and scrawny, but his limbs were longer and the lines in his face were harder, more defined. He could nearly stand eye to eye with Sasuke now, something that made Sasuke worry, immaturely, that Naruto would soon be taller than him.They travelled in silence. Sasuke decided not to ask any questions that he didn't want to hear the answers to. He was afraid that any conversation he struck up would inevitably end on a cheery note of hey, last time I saw you, you were trying to kill me. So he followed until Naruto whirled around suddenly, a silencing finger on his lips, and indicated with a vague, sloppy hand gesture (that no one but one of Naruto's team mates would have ever understood) that they should rest.They nestled down into the damp undergrowth and Sasuke curled into himself on the cold ground, keeping his eyes trained on Naruto's pale shadow in the darkness. He doubted that the other boy would try to kill him, but it never hurt to be cautious. That was one of the first lessons a Shinobi ever learned.It was cold and wet on the forest floor, but Sasuke was used to crouching for hours on end in unpleasant conditions. What he couldn't stand was Naruto. Naruto's breathing, Naruto's eerily intense gaze, Naruto's infuriating, uncharacteristic _silence_. The blonde shoved a soggy rice cake in his direction, and Sasuke took it gingerly, never letting his eyes leave the leaf shinobi. Naruto was staring at something in the distance- except there wasn't anything in the distance, just dark, tangled foilage and the faint buzzing of crickets. It was obvious to Sasuke that Naruto was certainly not doing anything so useful as keeping watch. He was just, staring. Finally, Sasuke couldn't take it."What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?" he snapped, whispering harshly and looking away from the other boy.Naruto blinked his large, blue eyes in the moonlight and replied simply: "Bringing you home." _Duh_. Like that was common sense.Sasuke was angry and he couldn't quite figure out why. The anger had been bubbling slowly from the moment Naruto had poked his stupid-looking head into Sasuke's window. Sasuke couldn't understand why he had even followed the idiot in the first place. Some strange sort of curiosity, perhaps; he wondered how far Naruto would take this game, only somewhere along the way Sasuke realized that it was no game... Naruto really meant to "rescue" him. He wrapped his arms around himself, tightly."What makes you think I _want_ to go home?" he demanded sharply, squeezing his eyes shut. He didn't want to see the shadows in Naruto's bright face. Didn't want to see his eyes."You've been here for, like, a year. Figured you'd have changed your mind by now."Sasuke's eyes snapped open. He was _kidding_, right? "No one knows you're here, do they Naruto?"Naruto grinned faintly- traces of that crazy, maniac grin- and shook his head, "Not a clue."Sasuke was about to say something, but he clicked his mouth shut when he realized that he had no words. He was empty. And God, had he ever missed that smile.

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A few days later, Sauske realized that he wasn't restrained in any way, manner or form. He should have realized it immedietly, but for some strange reason, Naruto was making him all fuzzy-headed- like his irrationality was catching. Being that there was nothing stopping him from knocking Naruto flat on his ass and escaping, he decided to throw a well-aimed shuriken at the other boy's head and see what happened.Naruto dodged it, predictiably, but Sasuke was already kicking him in the jaw by the time he turned around. Naruto flipped, landed awkwardly on one heel and skidded to a messy stop. Their eyes met and in a flash they were grappling, the old competitive instinct clawing to the surface as Sasuke struggled to pin Naruto underneath him. He wanted Naruto to hurt. He wanted him to bruise and bleed and maybe even wanted to break a few bones. He wanted to prove that he wasn't weak. He wasn't some stupid, helpless idiot genin who had gotten himself mixed up in something far beyond his control. Sasuke held rank in Orochimaru's village. And prestige. He had power, and Naruto was too _damn stupid_ to realize that the only person Sasuke needed to be rescued from was himself.It should have been easy enough to subdue Naruto and pound his stupid face into the ground just like he always had- but something was different. It wasn't that Naruto was taller, it wasn't that Sasuke had forgotten how exactly to read his former teamate's movements. Naruto fought him _lazily_- determined of course but with a drag and yawn that reminded Sasuke of Kakashi. It told Sasuke that Naruto was not taking him seriously. When he found himself pinned against the ground, Naruto's new, long body heavy and hot against him, Sasuke let out an ugly snarl, rolling back and kicking the blonde viciously in the gut. He spun quickly, groping for his last kunai. It shot singing and shimmering through the still air, connecting with it's target-- right in Naruto's throat. Naruto had caught the hilt of the kunai, but the blade had already dug in deep enough to have severed the boy's jugular. At the very least. Colors and noise whirled in Sasuke's mind. He felt sick and heavy- like he was going to fall over spitting up blood at any moment. His pulse raced and he could feel himself shaking uncontrollably- but he stayed stark still, eyes fixed on the small dribble of blood leaking down Naruto's bare neck.After a few long seconds, Naruto reached up with a grimace and gripped the hilt with both hands. Silently, he yanked the kunai out of his neck. The skin knitted as quickly as the blade left the flesh, and Sasuke began to breathe again."What the _fuck_ was that all about?" Naruto demanded, rubbing his neck sorely and chucking the kunai behind him."Kyuubi." Sasuke whispered softly, still trembling. Naruto didn't hear him."I mean, for fuck's sake- it's not like I had your tied up or chakra bound or something! I was expecting you to try to escape, but you didn't have to put a _kunai_ through my fucking _neck_! Crazy asshole!""Kyuubi." Sasuke whispered again. This time, Naruto listened, "The Kyuubi... didn't heal you that quickly before."The anger drained from Naruto's face and was replaced with a kind of white-faced terror comparable only to a child caught with one hand stuck in the cookie jar, "Oh. You know about that, huh?" he asked shakily and rethorically, laughing nervously, "Yeah, well. of course you do. Orochimaru would have told you, right. Duh."Sasuke just stared at Naruto with still, black eyes. He was trying to laugh, when a few minutes earlier there had been a kunai lodged two inches in his neck. A wise ninja would be fighting back. But then again, any other ninja would be dead."Why does it heal you so fast?" Sasuke wondered, stumbling towards Naruto on legs still shaky with some emotion he couldn't identify.Naruto tipped his head, seemingly unconcerned with the fact Sasuke had just tried to kill him- again, "Dunno. Just does. Been healing faster ever since, y'know, _that_ time."Sasuke did know _that_ time. Naruto's first rescue attempt hadn't been very successful either. Sasuke reached, unhindered, for one of Naruto's kunai- the idiot always kept them tucked into the belt of his pants. It was so obvious."Once I got out of the hospital, I haven't had a bruise or cut that lasted longer than thirty seconds." a slight huff of pride, "Pretty awesome, right?"Sasuke grabbed Naruto's arm roughly and pushed back the sleeve of his jacket. He was staring at Naruto's bare skin and holding a blade, but the idiot just stared at him expectantly. Was that supposed to be some sort of stupid "go ahead" signal? Sasuke really hated Naruto the most when he was being calm. Those were the moments when he was forced to acknowledge that once in a while, Naruto knew what he was doing.Sasuke gripped the kunai solidly and sliced across Naruto's underarm, drawing a thin, dark line of blood across the soft skin. However, the cut was already gone by the time Sasuke lifted the blade."Happy now? I wouldn't lie about it." Naruto sounded mildly irritated."How long were you in the hospital?" Sasuke asked, pale fingers still digging into Naruto's arm, "After you fought me, I mean."Naruto furrowed his brow, aquiring that studious expression he always did when trying to do math in his head. Sasuke's automatic reaction to that face had always been a light smack to the back of the head to disrupt the other boy's thoughts. But now Sasuke just stared and waited for an answer."Um, a month I think- maybe more. But that was different."Without really understanding why, Sasuke smiled- _Of course it was different. I hurt you that time. Everything else since me have just been flesh wounds._Still wearing a wicked half-grin, Sasuke plunged the blade into Naruto's skin again, tip first this time, twisting and digging through the flesh and veins until he hit bone-Naruto yelped- no, he _yipped_ like a fox- and jumped back, knocking the kunai from Sasuke's hand, "What the hell!" he gasped, fondling his wound tenderly. So, so much like a fox. Sasuke began counting, "I knew living with that freaking Snake bastard was going to turn you loony! Anywhere else you want to stick a kunai into?"_Fourty-five seconds_ Sasuke thought smugly when Naruto finally let go of his injured arm. The cut was gone of course- as if it had never existed- but, _You said no longer than thirty seconds. I win again._"Be careful what you say, moron. I might just take you up on your offer." Sasuke dusted himself off and regained his composure. The old insults rolled off his tongue easily, like second nature. "Unfortunately, I need to go back. Orochimaru's probably noticed I'm missing by now and he'll be angry.""Wait, _what_? You're _leaving_?" Naruto gaped, his face slowly shifting from anger to confusion to realization and back to anger again, "What was the point of following me this far, you jerk! Why didn't you just shove a knife into my throat three days ago when I broke into your bedroom? Could have saved me a hell of a lot of effort!"Sasuke shrugged, "I was bored. Wanted to see how far you'd take this."Naruto made a strangled, fustrated noise, pulled at his hair and stomped his feet angrily, "You- argh- you- grr- you _fucking asshole_, Sasuke Uchiha! You stupid, spoiled, conceited jerk! This is why I hate you so much! Why can't you just _admit_ that you want to come home? You always have to play your damn mind games with me- I'm getting pretty fucking sick of it, you know, so just... argh!" Naruto seemed to run out of words at this point, so he kicked a rock. The rock flew free for a few seconds, sailing through the air between them before crashing back into the earth at Sasuke's feet. They both stared at it and were silent a moment."Look," Naruto sighed heavily, "I-I can't exactly take you back if you don't want to go. Guess I wasn't thinking things through. It's been a while, I'd almost forgotten-" a growl, "- that you're a fucking _impossible_ bastard. So, whatever. Go. But you can't expect me to believe that this is what you really want. I promsied Sakura that I'd bring you home, so I'm gonna bring you home. Eventually."Sasuke drew his gaze up and looked at Naruto with an unreadable expression. Underneath he _seethed. You did this for Sakura? You idiot you idiot you idiot youidiot_ "You _idiot_!""What?" Naruto turned his lips downwards in a confused pout._If I come home it won't be for Sakura, you idiot!_ "I _can't_ come home, Naruto! If you would just stop and think instead of doing for even a minute, you would realize that I am no longer a shinobi of the Leaf!" he thrust a thumb towards his forehead protector, "_This_ is where my loyalties lie now. You really think Konoha is going to welcome me back with open arms? You're an _idiot_!"Naruto didn't answer, just stared blankly like he was still trying to figure things out. It was the slowness that made Sasuke want to hit Naruto. It made him want to hit Naruto _really_ hard."Don't you get it? I can _never_ go back! They won't take me!"Naruto laughed suddenly, causing Sasuke's anger to flare dangerously, "What's so funny?""If that's all you're worried about Sasuke, _you're_ the idiot!" Naruto snickered, "I'll _make_ them take you back! I'm going to be the next Hokage after all, so they'll have to listen to whatever I tell them." Naruto's grin was so sincere, so bright, so _confident_ that Sasuke wanted to believe him."You're not Hokage yet." he muttered bitterly, feeling the anger wash away. He wanted to be angry, he really did. Sasuke turned and began to leave, however Naruto didn't seem to be finished."Well, then I'll come and get you when I am."Sasuke stopped, but did not turn, "... what?""When I'm made Rokudaime, I'll come and get you. Nobody'll be able to say anything about it then because I'll be the boss."Sasuke spun on his heels only to see Naruto smiling wide, crazy and sincere. He crossed his arms and raised one eyebrow skeptically, "And what if I don't want to come back by then?"Naruto's smile melted into a mischevious smirk, "You will. And even if you don't, I'll drag you back. And kick Orochimaru's ass while I'm at it.""You're going to kick Orochimaru's ass?"Naruto laughed, "I'm going to be the Hokage! I'll do whatever I want." his smiled sombered slightly and he leveled his gaze with Sasuke's, "So... you gonna be ready when I come or what? It's a promise now, so you'd better agree.""Hmph." is all Sasuke said. He was feeling dizzy again- he thought that Naruto only made promises like that to pretty girls like Sakura.

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"That boy really is a nuisiance. Tell me again why you haven't killed him yet?"Sasuke simply shrugged and Orochimaru glared at him through bandages with those piercing, yellow snake eyes. Then he laughed."Oh, this is ridiculous! Don't tell me you're in _love_ with him!"Sasuke hated it when people presumed to understand how he felt. He had hated it when the girls in Konoha had done it, he had hated it when Kakashi had done it, he had especially hated it when _Naruto_ did it. But there was something especially demeaning when Orochimaru did it. The ex-Sanin had a habit of oversimplfying and trivializing the things Sasuke felt._I don't love Naruto_, Sasuke told himself firmly, _It's a lot more complicated than that_. To Orochimaru he said: "Shut up." and left.Orochimaru could draw whatever conclusions he wanted to. He would have anyways.

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Sasuke dreamt that he was eating pork ramen at the Ichiraku with Naruto and Sakura. There was nothing odd about the dream, except for the fact that Sasuke greatly disliked pork ramen, but it was the first night in nearly a year that Sasuke had not dreamt of Itachi's blood running through his fingers.

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"Sand nin are better trained than Leaf shinobi. You shouldn't feel too badly that she got the better of you."If it had been anyone else, Sasuke might have almost thought that they were tying to boost his spirits. However, this was Kabuto stitching up his wounds and Sasuke knew better than to trust what Orochimaru's second-in-command said as anything but a well-placed blow to his pride.Temari of the Sand had gotten the better of him- a well placed smack with her fan had sent him flying and knocked him out of commision for the last half of the skirmish. It wasn't that she was a better shinobi, however. Sasuke had no doubt that in a one on one fight he could beat her- kill her even- without even breaking a sweat. It wasn't his fault he had been distracted.Naruto was a golden flash of light on the battle field, fast and brilliant as a sunbream. He'd caught Sasuke's eye as he flitted throughout the battle field throwing kunai like an expert and barking orders.Naruto was giving _orders_ to Sand nin like Temari and Kankuro. Lowly little Naruto- underdog of Konoha, not even a _chuunin_ at sixteen- was giving orders to the _Kazekage's siblings_ and they were listening to him with the quick and certain responses of loyal ninja.Sasuke wasn't quite sure how he felt about this. A little admiration, he supposed. Surprise would explain that strange lurch in his gut and he _knew_ that the cold tendrils tightening around his heart was jealously. He simply couldn't believe it and that's why he couldn't take his eyes off him."Don't look so bitter, Uchiha. _I_ know that you could have beaten her. Any moron could see that." Kabuto rested his palms on Sasuke's arm and the boy felt strange chakra flow into his body, "I used to know your brother, you know."The med nin said it in a conversational tone but the words hit Sasuke like a blade thurst into his chest and twisted around once or twice. Kabuto had never spoke to him about Itachi before- not in three years. He hadn't even made any illusions to knowing who his brother _was_. Sasuke yanked his arm away and narrowed his eyes, "What does Itachi have to do with this?""He spoke of you once or twice." Kabuto said smoothly, tipping his head so that the light reflected off his glasses and hid his eyes. He placed a single finger on his lips as if he were trying to recall exactly what had been said, "He said you were weak, but had potential. He seemed to think that you had the ability to surprass even him- a belief which Master Orochimaru obviously shares. However, the rest of the clan was holding you back in the same way that they were holding him back. He was curious as to what you would turn into when you got older and that's why he left you alive."A poignant pause and Sasuke realized that his breathing was coming in shallow and rough. He ran a hand across his forehead, brushed his bangs out his his eyes and clenched his palms into tight fists, "W-what are you trying to say? Are you trying to say that he... was concerned about me? That he left me alive out of some kind of... twisted love?"The tips of Kabuto's lips tightened as his smirk deepened and he chuckled deep in his throat, "Oh, don't be ridiculous Sasuke." he grabbed the boy's arm again and resumed the healing, "Itachi's just a murderer. He's only keeping you alive because he wants to play with you- turn you into something like himself. I'd say he's succeeded to some extent. You've wounded people in the same way he's wounded you. Unfortunately, you leave nothing but flesh wounds- little cuts that are easy to forget. When you were younger you _loved_ Itachi, didn't you. That's why it cut you so deep." Kabuto leveled his gaze and looked at Sasuke meaningfully, "Itachi doesn't love you. No one does."Sasuke pressed his lips into a thin line. Kabuto was wong- he was nothing like Itachi. He knew what Itachi was trying to do and he also knew that his brother would not succeed.Because there was someone who loved him.

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Sasuke was seventeen when Neji of the Hyuuga clan chased him down. He was desperate and ragged when the Leaf Jounin finally caught up with him, but ready for a fight. Neji was probably one of the most brilliant Shinobi in the Leaf, however in the end, like everyone else, he was _nothing_ compared to Naruto. If Sasuke could defeat Naruto, he could definitely defeat a branch house throwaway like Neji.He adopted a stance and activated his Sharingan, sketching out the battle in his mind's eye. He'd never fought the Byakugan before, but Orochimaru had forced him to study it. As long as he didn't stop moving, he was certain he could keep the other boy at bay.His surprise was immeasurable when Neji slowed his pace and instead of throwing a kunai, bowed stiffly in what Sasuke recognized as a gesture of peace. "I come bearing a message from the Hokage." he said, his voice ice cold and almost _too_ formal."What does that old hag want from me?" Sasuke hissed, refusing to drop his stance. This sort of baiting tactic wasn't Neji's style. It's possible that he was being sincere, but that still didn't explain what business the Ledgendary Sannin Tsunade could possible want with him.Neji arched one elegant eyebrow, "I'm sure you're referring to the Godaime, Lady Tsunade. I'm surprised you haven't heard, Uchiha, she died over a week ago. I've come with summons from the Rokudaime." Neji paused and Sasuke's muscels relaxed against his consent. He felt numb- _Tsunade was dead, that couldn't possible mean_... "Uzumaki Naruto, Hokage of Konoha, requests your immediate return to the Village of the Hidden Leaf."Sasuke's head spun. Naruto had finally done it. The moron was _Hokage_. And was _asking him to come home_. It was almost too good to be true. So good that there was something horrifically wrong about it."Why... why didn't he come himself?" _That moron._"The Hokage can hardly be expected to leave the village during a war." Neji's tone was growing more hostile with every word that came out of his mouth, "He has other duties to attend to."_That moron_, "If he wanted me to come back, he should have come himself!" the relief was quickly drowned out by the blinding rage. Naruto didn't care, didn't care, obviously _didn't care enough to even come get me himself_. The rage boiled and crackled and burned inside of him. He felt like his past was falling away behind him. It Naruto had been there, he could have _killed_ him. _Would_ have killed him.He didn't realize that he had activated the Mangekyou until he was staring at Neji's dead body, cold and stiff on the ground without a mark on it. His pale face was twisted in horror and Sasuke's head felt heavy enough to fall off.He stumbled back to the Sound village and ignored the strange glances the other nins shot him. He barged into Orochimaru's den and ignored the sannin's inquiries. Naruto was a moron- there was no going back ever.He closed his eyes tightly, nearly swept away by the swirling power of the Mangekyou when he open his eyes."I'm ready." he said bluntly. Listelessly. Words without hope.Orochimaru smiled.**The End****Omake:** The Alternate Ending"What are you doing here?""I am here," Neji said dramatically, "Because Jenn thinks that I am the SHIZNIT... and Naruto wanted me to drag your sorry ass home.""Ahhh! NEVAH! You and your LONG PRETTY HAIR shall feel the wrath of my UNBRIDLED PRETTY BOY ANGST!""Hahaha Uchiha! But you seem to forget that I am also a socially maladjusted angst-beast with an achingly beautiful face! Your pretty boy angst has no effect on me! Ohohohohoho!""Oh, in that case I'll just kill you."He did.Orochimaru was stewing evilly in a dark room (as usual) when Sasuke burst through the door waving his arms frantically."Naruto's a dick and I hate him! Take me now, Orochimaru!"Orochimaru grinned maliciously, pleased with the boy's sudden change of heart, "Oh, with pleasure." he purred, rising slowly from his makeshift throne.Sasuke's dark eyes widened in horror when he realized what the sannin was planning, "No, wait!" he protested, "I didn't mean it like _that_!"Too late. Silly Sasuke.**The End. (Really this time.)**


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